Newsmen Say Press Career Tough, But See Spots for Men With Talent

The four experienced newspaperman who composed the panel at last night's seminar on journalism as a career said unanimously that although it is tough to break into the newspaper business, there is always room at the top for talented men and women.

Speaking at the first in the annual series of Conferences on Careers sponsored by the Office of Student Placement, Frank McNaughton, special Washington correspondent for Time Magazine; John L. Steele, staff writer for the United Press; William H. Stringer, assistant to to the editor of the Christian Science Monitor, and moderator John H. Crider, news analyst for station WEEI all agreed that "the water's fine and anyone can get in who has the ability."

The panel members also agreed concerning the vital role which journalism plays in a free society. Calling it "the keystone of a democratic society," Crider said that in his opinion "the press should be called the first rather than the fourth estate."

On the same line, McNaughton quoted Jefferson's remark that "Where the press is free and the people can read, all is safe." Steele called journalists "sanitary engineers letting in light an dair."

The journalists all thought that the best way to break into the field is either with a job on a small town newspaper or on one of the press services, but strongly advised against attempting to start on a big metropolitan paper.